A police trooper pulled over a funeral hearse driving in the HOV lane, reminding everyone that dead people don’t qualify for the carpool lane.
“Today we stopped a local funereal home hearse in the HOV lane,” the Nevada Highway Patrol’s Southern Command wrote on Twitter. “The driver had the dearly departed in the back, he thought the deceased could be counted as two people. I guess we should clarify this, living, breathing people count for the HOV lane.”
Today we stopped a local funereal home hearse in the HOV lane. The driver had the dearly departed in the back, he thought the deceased could be counted as two people. I guess we should clarify this, living, breathing people count for the HOV lane. The driver was given a warning pic.twitter.com/OQms0ktl8t
— NHP Southern Command (@NHPSouthernComm) July 1, 2019
In video footage obtained by ABC News, the police officer approached the hearse and asked for the driver’s registration.
The driver responded with, “I have a deceased in the back.”
“Tell you what, I’ll go ahead and give you a warning today, but I’ll warn you we’re working the HOV lanes pretty heavy today,” the officer said.
“So he won’t count?” the driver asked the officer, according to the Reno Gazette Journal.
“He’s not with us anymore,” the officer responded.
Nevada trooper pulls over hearse traveling in HOV lane, saying passengers must be living in order to be counted as vehicle occupants.
Fortunately for this driver, he got let off with just a warning. https://t.co/N1bfmXa5xv pic.twitter.com/LqfZGLIGkE
— ABC News (@ABC) July 4, 2019
He told the news outlet that while he was used to a variety of excuses, this was a first.
“In this job you hear people’s excuses for different things all day long, and that’s the most original one I’ve had yet in my career,” he said.
Information regarding Nevada’s HOV lanes states that “HOV lanes are dedicated lanes to be used exclusively by vehicles with two or more people—including buses, carpools and vanpools.” However, it does not specify whether those passengers have to be alive or not.
“When you talk about high occupancy vehicle lanes, you’re talking about seats – so a person would need to occupy a seat to qualify,” Nevada Highway Patrol Trooper Jason Buratczuk told the Reno Gazette Journal.
Nevada trooper pulls over hearse traveling in HOV lane https://t.co/1AO8x5sKgO pic.twitter.com/GR5A2teBWk
— Eyewitness News (@ABC7NY) July 4, 2019
He added that in this case, “This person was obviously a decedent and in the cargo area of the car, so they would not qualify for the HOV lane.”
Most funeral homes seem to agree with that statement and tend to avoid HOV lanes.
“When they’re dead, they’re cargo,” Fred McDermott, a crematorium manager, told the news outlet.
On the other hand, some people have brought up the question of whether or not a fetus counts towards the HOV lane.
“That fetus wouldn’t be taking up an extra seat in the car,” Buratczuk said. “It would be in the womb.”
Highway patrol pulled over a hearse in the HOV lane. The driver pointed to the back and asked, ‘He doesn’t count?’ https://t.co/cACgW5veFs pic.twitter.com/YWuiOBsuWs
— FOX 12 Oregon KPTV (@fox12oregon) July 3, 2019
In 2006, a judge in Arizona ruled that a fetus did not count as a “person” and thus, under federal rule, a pregnant woman could not use the HOV lane.
“The law is meant to fill empty space in a vehicle,″ the judge said at the time.
The state of Nevada just updated its laws on HOV lane last year.
Hearse gets pulled over in HOV lane, claims body counts as passenger: https://t.co/x6J2w2YsOh pic.twitter.com/0xUXqTVHit
— ABC 7 News – WJLA (@ABC7News) July 2, 2019
Highway patrol officers have also increased enforcement of the HOV lane, handing out 31 fines on the first day of summer, according to KTNV.
The fine for illegally driving in an HOV lane is $250.
Hearse driver learns dead body doesn’t qualify car for HOV lane: https://t.co/AXEGJ9QG8T pic.twitter.com/8o8WoVbwUc
— WSB-TV (@wsbtv) July 3, 2019
